TENNIS: Greenhalgh lone Kiwi survivor

James Greenhalgh is the lone Kiwi survivor in the singles
draw at the US$25,000 Gallagher International Challenger in
Hamilton, as Swedish qualifiers Nicklas Timfjord and
Matthias Hellstrom upset Kiwi opponents.

Top Kiwi tennis
player Mark Nielsen failed at the first hurdle, going down
to promising Swede Hellstrom, winning the first set but
lacking consistency in the final two sets for a 5-7 6-3 6-1
scoreline.

The match was always going to be close despite
disparate rankings. Nielsen was the tournament's sixth seed,
with an entry ranking of 218 compared to Hellstrom as a
qualifier and a ranking of 530.

But Hellstrom showed he is
a player with a big future and has a well-drilled game, if
only he can get over consistent back injuries which have
restricted him to only two events since July.

A former
world junior number four, Hellstrom looks like he should
still be at school but is actually 22-years-old. He pulled
off numerous forehand and backhand winners and out-thought
Nielsen in the close-fought second set, before wrapping up
the third set quickly.

This is Hellstrom's second visit to
New Zealand after competing in the three Futures tournaments
in Tauranga, Timaru and Christchurch last year, where he was
a singles semifinalist, finalist and quarterfinalist
respectively.

In a late afternoon match, wildcard Teo
Susnjak fell to qualifier Timfjord in three sets. Timfjord
and doubles partner Hellstrom have been training in Hamilton
since last Wednesday and seem to quickly work out tactics
against their opponents and don't mind hitting
winners.

Timfjord's score was similar to Hellstrom's,
dropping the first set in a close affair before storming
back for the match 6-7(3) 6-3 6-1.

Auckland's Mark
Thompson couldn't quite overcome his Australian opponent, as
he led in both sets against Queensland's Joseph Sirianni but
couldn't capitalise on a 4-2 lead in each set.

Thompson
still emerges from the event with both a singles and doubles
ranking point which will improve his tournament entry
rankings: "The point from here will help me move up a little
in the rankings and maybe get me into the main draw of
Futures events.

"I had a lot of chances but didn't take
them...that always happens. I guess if I play more of these
tournaments and players, I'll know when to take the
chances," he said.

James Greenhalgh re-started his singles
career with a solid win over American Jim Thomas in his
first-round match. "I played really well and kept a good
level for the whole match. He was the one who played up and
down," said Greenhalgh, returning to Hamilton where he spent
some of his formative years.

"I spent three years playing
tennis in Hamilton and played for Waikato in the teams
events. It's good to get the five ranking points which gets
me into qualifying for tournaments." Greenhalgh will play
his second-round singles match against Australian Peter
Clark on Thursday.

In other matches, seventh seed Ishii
Yaoki of Japan was defeated by Australia's Peter Clarke in a
drawn-out three-set match, while qualifier Jaymon Crabb
scored a win over Donavan September and will now play
Hellstrom.

Third seed Barry Cowan of the United Kingdom
ranked 197th used his big serve to good effect for a tight
straight sets win over Australian qualifier Paul Baccanello
7-5 7-6(5).

The first part of the second round will see second
seed Dejan Petrovic back in action, as the 176th ranked
player faces up to the big-serving Brit Justin Layne, while
fourth seed Neville Godwin of South Africa will have his
work cut out against Timfjord.

Fifth seed Michael Hill of
Sydney and American Michael Joyce are both creeping quietly
through the draw and play Yves Allegro and Lee Pearson
respectively.

One doubles pairing involving Kiwis is
certain to move into the quarterfinals as wildcard
combinations Derek Burden and Adam McNeil of Auckland are
drawn against Lee Radovanovich and Australian partner Peter
Clarke. Mark Nielsen and James Greenhalgh will also play
their respective first round doubles matches - Dave
Worsley.

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